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Iguodala's addition paying off for Denver

Even when he's off, shooting guard delivers

By Benjamin Hochman The Denver Post

Posted:
02/20/2013 11:06:49 PM MST

DENVER -- Here's what makes Andre Iguodala Andre Iguodala. On Tuesday against Boston, he made as many field goals for the Nuggets as your CPA. He even air-balled a jumper. And a free throw. But Iguodala still made a major impact in Denver's win, serving up seven assists and stripping away a stupendous steal down the stretch.

The trade deadline is today, and it's unlikely that the Nuggets will make a move -- if they do, it would probably be with a player not in the rotation. But Denver continues to reap the benefits of their last big trade, even if the dude can't seem to make a shot.

"When things aren't going your way, you've got to fight through it and try to find other ways to help your team," said Iguodala, one of the league's top defenders.

The shooting guard missed all seven shots against the Celtics, including three in the paint. But there he was, still on the court in the close game. And with Denver up 93-86 and 2:24 left, he picked up Avery Bradley off a screen near the right wing and snatched the ball from the Celtics guard.

"That's what he does, he's not just a scorer," Nuggets teammate Ty Lawson said. "He gets steals. He had the most assists on the team. He does a lot of things, and that's what we need him to do when he's not having a good game, just do the little things."

OK. He still missed all of his shots. He's averaged 11.8 points per game in the past eight, compared to 13.2 on the season, and he's coming off a neck injury that sidelined him for two games.

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Yes, he's had some scoring splurges this season. But a narrative that continues intoMarch is that of Iguodala still looking for comfort in Denver's offense.

"I'm sure it's hard for him, psychologically not finding an offensive rhythm," Nuggets coach George Karl said, "but for me, I think he should just relax, chill and continue to lead us defensively. Offensively he'll get better -- don't try to take tough shots, just try to find easy shots, that would be my recommendation. Try to get to the offensive glass some, run out hard, try to get ahead of the pack a little bit, and then when you get into an open one, try to knock it down."

Denver's next four games are against teams below .500, perhaps a good situation for Iguodala to try these tactics. But these aren't, if you will, gimmes. Three of the four games are on the road, and one opponent, Washington, has been playing above .500 since the return of John Wall, and another, the Los Angeles Lakers, are forever dangerous.

Oh, and the Nuggets lost to the Wizards at Pepsi Center earlier this season, a night Iguodala scored just two points -- but had five steals, four rebounds and four assists.

"It's not really the shooting that's bothering me, I just can't really get comfortable," Iguodala said after the win against Boston. "I've been trying to get in a good rhythm for a while. And the good thing is that we've been winning. Ty and (Danilo) Gallinari have been playing really well the last month, playing with confidence. And Kenneth (Faried) has been having big games. So hopefully that says we're going to be scary-good if I can ever can just find it."

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